Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • transitive verb To reduce sharply the population of (an area); depopulate.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To deprive of people; deprive of inhabitants; depopulate; dispeople.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To deprive of inhabitants; to depopulate.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Plural form of unperson.
  • verb transitive To deprive of inhabitants; to depopulate.

Etymologies

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Examples

  • The honourable exception is the work of the historian Mark Curtis, who describes the Chagossians as "unpeople".

    The Heathlander 2008

  • Investigations like this and others prove the death penalty is this country's ultimate punitive measure used almost exclusively against "unworthy, unpeople victims" to eliminate the unwanted, and those targeted are largely defenseless against it.

    "Worthy and Unworthy Victims" 2007

  • In a recent article, John Pilger quotes historian Mark Curtis 'characterization of "unworthy victims" as "unpeople" while Herman and Chomsky explain the "propaganda system," played out in the dominant media, characterizes people abused and victimized by us or our client states as "unworthy."

    "Worthy and Unworthy Victims" 2007

  • Mandela said to me once at Rivonia a farm in South Africa where the ANC's banned leadership, including Liel, met in secret, ‘You know, they want to make us unpeople, not seen.’

    Fighting Words 2007

  • Further, the US notably does the same things to many thousands of unknown "unworthy" prisoners in its torture-prisons where those held have no rights either and are treated any way their captors wish out of sight and mind and virtually ignored in the West as "unpeople."

    "Worthy and Unworthy Victims" 2007

  • In a recent article, John Pilger quotes historian Mark Curtis 'characterization of "unworthy victims" as "unpeople" while Herman and Chomsky explain the "propaganda system," played out in the dominant media, characterizes people abused and victimized by us or our client states as "unworthy."

    "Worthy and Unworthy Victims" 2007

  • Further, the US notably does the same things to many thousands of unknown "unworthy" prisoners in its torture-prisons where those held have no rights either and are treated any way their captors wish out of sight and mind and virtually ignored in the West as "unpeople."

    "Worthy and Unworthy Victims" 2007

  • This essay shows its effects on real people - those going along are "worthy" and those who don't or don't matter are "unworthy unpeople."

    "Worthy and Unworthy Victims" 2007

  • This essay shows its effects on real people - those going along are "worthy" and those who don't or don't matter are "unworthy unpeople."

    "Worthy and Unworthy Victims" 2007

  • Investigations like this and others prove the death penalty is this country's ultimate punitive measure used almost exclusively against "unworthy, unpeople victims" to eliminate the unwanted, and those targeted are largely defenseless against it.

    "Worthy and Unworthy Victims" 2007

Comments

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  • Shakespeare word. See comment under salad days.

    September 15, 2007

  • She smiled no reassuring modern smile but now and then produced a rare and archaic one of her own, a smirk that unpeopled the world.

    - Aidan Higgins, Lebensraum

    January 7, 2009